Rothesay is the UK’s largest pensions insurance specialist, purpose-built to protect pension schemes and their members’ pensions. With over £68 billion of assets under management, we secure the pensions of more than one million people and pay out, on average, approximately £200 million in pension payments each month.

Rothesay is dedicated to providing excellence in customer service alongside prudent underwriting, a conservative investment strategy and the careful management of risk. We are trusted by the pension schemes of some of the UK’s best known companies to provide pension solutions, including British Airways, Cadbury, the Civil Aviation Authority, the Co-Operative, Morrisons, Smiths Industries and Telent. At Rothesay, we are striving to transform our industry. We believe deeply in creating real security for the future and our leadership in finding new and better ways to do that is the key to our success. To do that, we need the very brightest original thinkers to bring creativity as well as rigour. Rothesay is a rewarding place to work, where quality people can thrive and prosper. We pride ourselves on the connections our people build, many of whom have been with us for over ten years.

The team:

The trading team work closely with our structuring, capital, risk and quant teams, analysing asset opportunities, pension fund buyout trades, and managing the company-wide market risks. In general, we are looking for smart, quantitative, commercial, problem-solving-oriented, “get-things-done” candidates with an excellent academic record and a genuine interest in fixed income markets.

Role Overview:

The Trading Assistant role sits as a critical member of the Liquid Trading team. You will be exposed to trading in derivatives across interest, inflation, and cross-currency markets, as well as the wider Liquid Credit portfolio. The training you will undertake is high in intensity and will require you to undertake challenging project and day-to-day work that will extend your skills and give you direct access to the high calibre multi-disciplined Rothesay trading team.

Job Responsibilities:

You will be responsible for:

• Close collaboration with all members of the Trading team.
• Supporting Credit Portfolio Managers with daily trading activities. This includes booking bonds, liaising with internal teams, and interacting with the sell-side to check and confirm trade terms.
• Owning the daily asset marking process and the ongoing maintenance of this process, through close work with Strats, Controllers, and Asset teams to add, remark and update assets.
• Reviewing all trading activity at EoD to ensure that risk will be correctly represented and then responding to relevant teams as a part of the wider T+1 reconciliation process.
• Producing regular MI to the Heads of Liquid Trading teams, as well as the wider team itself.
• Completing ad-hoc tasks such as modelling new assets or setting up new liability-related asset portfolios.
• Be the go-to representative of the trading team to help coordinate cross team collaboration, liaising closely with Liquidity, Capital, Ops, Strats, PC and others, and overtime take on more formal representation of the Trading team in various internal committees.
• Seeking to create, improve and automate wide-ranging processes, helping to facilitate trading and reduce operational risks.

Skills and Experience 

• Undergraduate degree with 2:1 or equivalent grade.
• Knowledge and/or experience in Fixed Income Markets and an understanding of how different products trade. Particularly bonds and swaps.
• Meticulous attention to detail and accuracy.
• Strong and open communication style.
• Highly proficient in Excel.
• Willing to challenge and look for efficiencies.
• Eagerness to learn and ask questions.
• Fluency with Rothesay systems is an advantage, but not a prerequisite.

Competencies

• Technical Skills - Demonstrates strong technical skills required for the role, pays attention to detail, takes initiative to broaden his/her knowledge and demonstrates appropriate analytical skills
• Drive and Motivation – Be a self-starter; successfully handles multiple tasks, takes initiative to improve his/her own performance, works intensely towards extremely challenging goals and persists in the face of obstacles or setbacks
• Client and Business Focus - Effectively handles difficult requests, builds trusting, long-term relationships with clients and service providers, helps the client to identify/define needs and manages client/business expectations
• Teamwork – Demonstrate evidence of being a strong team player, collaborates with others within and across teams, encourages other team members to participate and contribute and acknowledges others' contributions
• Communication Skills - Communicates what is relevant and important in a clear and concise manner and shares information/new ideas with others. The successful candidate will need to be able to confidently express their own viewpoint and to communicate clearly and succinctly financial results and complex actuarial issues to actuaries and non-actuaries.
• Judgement and Problem solving - Thinks ahead, anticipates questions, plans for contingencies, finds alternative solutions and identifies clear objectives. Sees the big picture and effectively analyses complex issues
• Creativity/Innovation - Looks for new ways to improve current processes and develop creative solutions that are grounded in reality and have practical value
• Influencing Outcomes - Presents sound, persuasive rationale for ideas or opinions. Takes a position on issues and influences others' opinions and presents persuasive recommendations

Disclaimer

This position description is intended to describe the duties most frequently performed by an individual in this position. It is not intended to be a complete list of assigned duties, but to describe a position level.  The role shall be performed within a professional office environment. Rothesay has health and safety polices that are available for all workers upon request.  There are no specific health risks associated with the role.

Inclusion

Rothesay actively promotes diversity and inclusivity. We know that our success depends on our people and that by nurturing a culture that values difference, we create a stronger, more dynamic business. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of race, colour, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability or age.